Asleep
by shotofwhiskey
Summary: A short but sweet Anderbros moment, where Blaine has a rather strange habit and Cooper needs to visit more often. Pure fluff.


Oooh I don't even know, you guys. I'm in such a great mood right now so it's FLUFFY ONE SHOT TIME

I have this headcanon where Blaine has an odd habit of always going out to his backyard with an old book and reading under a tree, and he always ends up falling asleep. So that's essentially what this is, with Cooper thrown in for super awesome brotherly love fluff.

Any guesses on what Blainers is reading...? ;D

* * *

><p><em>Through the forest have I gone<em>

_But Athenian found I none_

_On whose eyes I might approve_

_This flower's force in stirring love._

Blaine sighs happily as a calm breeze makes the yellowed pages of the old book flutter. He doesn't even mind that he's now lost his place, because he's read this book so many times he's had to fix the spine with masking tape. Whenever he wants a moment of quiet, he'll grab an old book and head out to the back yard, sit beneath one of their apple trees and read. While sometimes he'll read something more modern, this book is rather important to him.

He shuts it then, not wanting the breeze to tear a page loose. It's happened before, when he was reading an ancient copy of Aesop's fables. He had just sat there and watched the page with its ink drawing of a lion and a mouse flutter away, getting stuck in the neighbor's lilac bushes. The book he has today means more to him, it was given to him a long time ago on his ninth birthday by his grandmother.

"Your mama doesn't want you to have this," she had told him, "and it may be a bit much for you. But I want you to have it, darling, and take good care of it."

And after she died later that year, he hid it in a shoe box with other highly important treasures from his youth. Bottle caps from his brother's Jones Soda binges, a rusted old railroad spike he found while taking a walk with his dad, old nuts and bolts and washers that he would find during his adventures in the backyard.

Only recently did he have the desire to dig this old book back out and reread it. The last time was when he was thirteen and had only just started realizing who he was. After long days at middle school, being taunted and generally unliked, Blaine would come home and sit under the apple tree and read this book. Escape into a fantasy world. Nowadays he has so much to be happy about, so he doesn't need the escapism, but the desire to give this book another readthrough has been nagging at him for days. And since the weather has recently taken a turn for the better, he knew he'd be an idiot to waste it reading in his bedroom.

He always gets sleepy when he reads a lot. It doesn't help that the sun is out and has warmed the grass. He sets the book down carefully and leans back against the tree, feeling content.

The only sounds are cars driving past the house every once in awhile and the breeze rustling the leaves.

* * *

><p>It's nearing sunset when Cooper pulls his Trailblazer into the driveway of his parents' house. He had decided to drop by today, maybe see his little brother and talk about politics with his dad while flattering his mom into giving him free food.<p>

The front door is locked, but there's always a spare key under the terra cotta pot. It's been sitting on the porch in same spot for years, and it's very badly painted. He and Blaine had painted it when they were kids. Well, when Blaine was a kid. Cooper likes to think that he is still a kid at heart. His mother has put fake flowers in the pot, stuck in a square of that soft green styrofoam. He remembers getting yelled at for pushing his fingers all over that stuff, but how could he help it? That stuff feels weird. But this time he holds back, just lifting up the pot and grabbing the key. He enters the house with a flourish, and announces "Hello loving family! I've come for a visit...!"

His voice echoes through the house, and nothing follows it. Usually when he does this, his father will shout from the kitchen to not shout indoors, and his mother will come in from the living room to make him take his shoes off at the door and to fuss over him, ask him why he hasn't gotten a haircut yet. And there has always been the pounding footsteps of his kid brother, who always seems to be up in his room when Cooper comes over. That's the sound he always looks forward to, the sound of Blaine, no matter how old he is or how 'mature' he's become, trampling down the front stairs hard enough to shake the chandelier in the foyer.

But today, nothing.

He doesn't panic, though. He walks through the house and back to the kitchen, trying to ignore all the nostalgia assaulting him at once. The loose floor board where he got a splinter nearly an inch long (no lie, a whole inch!). The model cars his father puts together sitting on the book shelf. Photos framed on the walls of Blaine and Cooper, sometimes separate but almost always in a photo together, because it is so hard to pry the two of them apart. As he walks into the kitchen, he realizes that he really needs to visit more often.

There's still no sign of Blaine, but the white board on the wall by the fridge has a note from their parents, that they're out for the evening and won't be back until very late. At first Cooper bristles, thinking of them leaving poor Blaine alone in this big old house. And then he remembers that Blaine is sixteen now and probably wants nothing more than to be left alone, the whole house to himself. He should at least be glad he didn't walk in on a party in full swing, because that's what would have happened if his parents had left him alone at home for any length of time.

He knows his brother, though, and instead of first going upstairs to knock on his bedroom door, he looks out the window in the kitchen to the backyard. And sure enough, there's Blaine, lying in the grass under the old apple tree, fast asleep.

"Really?" Cooper says with a sigh. "Christ, Blaine, you're so predictable..."

He heads for the back door, passing the pile of folded laundry on top of the dryer. He finds a red plaid fleece blanket folded at the top, and he brushes his hand over it. It's still as soft as ever, and it's still a bit warm from its tumble in the dryer. He looks toward the back door, out the small window, taking note of the breeze kicking up and the sun quickly setting. Without needing another moment's hesitation, he grabs the blanket and heads outside.

Once he's walking across the lawn, he's glad he decided to bring the blanket. It's still a bit chilly, given that it's springtime. He has no idea how long Blaine has been out here asleep, but knowing his brother it's been awhile.

He stops at the foot of the apple tree and looks down at him. He's lying on his side, curled up, breathing softly. Cooper kneels slowly next to him and pulls the blanket over him, tucking the ends around him. He grabs Blaine's shoulder and gives him a careful little shake. "Hey," he says, leaning a bit closer, "Hey, Blainers. Wake up."

Blaine snuffles a bit and blinks awake, clutching at the blanket once he realizes it's gotten chilly. He sputters for a minute, looking around as though wondering where the hell he is. Cooper smiles at him once Blaine catches sight of him. "...Cooper?" he says, squinting up at him.

"Yeah," Cooper says. "I see you've fallen asleep outside again."

Blaine lifts his head a bit, taking in his surroundings with a little frown. "Huh. I guess I did." He shifts around, burrowing into the blanket when the wind kicks up.

Cooper smiles fondly at him. He just can't help it, he's so damn adorable. He gives Blaine a little nudge on the shoulder and says, "Come on, squirt, let's go in before you catch your death."

Blaine moans at the nickname, but allows Cooper to help him to his feet anyway. Once they're both standing, and once Blaine has picked up his book, Cooper throws an arm around his shoulders and starts leading him toward the house. "Mom and Dad aren't gonna be home tonight?"

"Not till later," Blaine mumbles sleepily. He attempts to hide from the chilly wind by burrowing further into Cooper's side as they walk.

"Awesome," Cooper says, smiling down at him. Blaine has scrunched his face up in distaste at the wind. "What d'you say we raid the fridge, rent a bunch of bad porn on Dad's On Demand bill and make fun of it MST3K style?"

Blaine looks over at him as Cooper opens the back door. He looks horrified and Cooper busts out laughing at the look on his face. "Oh, Blainers, I'm kidding! God, the look on your face...!" he cries out, nearly doubled over laughing. Blaine just shakes his head and walks inside.

"How are we even related..." Blaine grumbles.

"I'm sure there's a very funny story that would explain it," Cooper says as he shuts the door. He walks into the kitchen where Blaine is standing, looking sleepy and adorable with the blanket. He has a strange look on his face, and Cooper stands there for a moment, trying to interpret it. "...What?" he says with a little laugh.

"Nothing," Blaine says, "I just missed you."

Cooper doesn't know what to say to that. That puppy dog look of Blaine's has to be one of the few things that is able to completely disarm him. It makes him feel all warm inside, and he would never admit that out loud, lest he damage his image of being a hardass. But those Goddamn puppy dog eyes... "I've missed you, too," he says eventually, putting every ounce of meaning he can into it. To hell with being a hardass. This is his baby brother. "Disney marathon?"

Blaine's smile brightens. "Of course!"

* * *

><p>So there's that. As an older sister, I put a lot of myself in Cooper. If he turns out to be a douche then I'm done with Glee. I've had it with them writing drama for the sake of drama and GIVING ALL THE GOOD SHIT TO FINCHEL ASDKJGHBDF<p>

sorry lol. Let me know what you think of this bit of fluff. :D


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